According to Census 2011, 31.16% of Indians live in urban areas. There is a growing trend towards cities due to increased population, better job prospects and migration from rural to urban areas. It has resulted in over-crowding of the cities, more concretization of the urban spaces and a tremendous pressure of the urban-infrastructure. This has also led to rapid depletion and obstruction of urban environmental planning. We don’t have enough space for trees and forests, birds, and other animals that are essential to making any city livable.
The environment in which urbanites live has a direct impact on their health and well-being. Concrete buildings are more polluting and less oxygen. It is not surprising that many Indian cities have an alarmingly high Air Quality Index (AQI). In some cities, the AQI parameters can even exceed the dangerous limit. Many cities in India are at the edge of a pollution-blast. Air-toxicity is causing health problems, including respiratory diseases and lungs. It affects everyone, regardless of his level of luxury and modern amenities.
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Urban-Forest is the only viable solution. Municipalities and Municipal-councils used to resort to tree-plantation, where trees were planted along roads, over road-dividers, or in open areas. We have seen many examples of good initiatives in which both government agencies and the public have participated in large-scale tree planting. However, the problem remains with tree-plantation drives. This is because of the cost involved in maintaining and saving trees until they become self-sustaining.
Tree plantation has a very low survival rate. This strategy does not seem to be very effective, given the high level of urbanization, urbanization, concrete and concretization of urban areas, at unprecedented rates, scales, and the extent of this urbanization. To overcome this problem of survival, the only solution is to create urban forests. Planting 1000 trees and maintaining a forest with 1000 trees can cost less than 1/10 the cost of plantation.
WHAT IS AN URBAN FOREST?
There is a distinction between tree planting and Urban-forest. Urban Forest refers to a man-made tree in an urban-setup. This type of forest is created by humans and is planted, developed, and maintained in the same environment as a natural forest. Man-made Urban forest refers to the creation of a forest by human efforts.
Our planet is made up of five elements: Panch-Tatva, which are land and soil, water and air, space, fire, and air. The microcosmos of the planet-earth, forest, contains all five elements: fertile and rich soil, streams, rivulets and rivers, oxygen and other airy gasses which are essential for the survival and growth of forests, specific areas and spaces in which they exist, and sunlight (fire), which is necessary for plants to survive and make food.
These five basic elements are interconnected in an endless way, resulting in many types of plants, birds, and animals. There are also millions of tiny creatures that spring from this interaction. Humanity is quickly destroying forests in pursuit of his own greed and needs. Each sub-system interacts with the others to create a larger eco-system on an ongoing basis.
Forests can be described as a family of trees. Each tree helps the other trees to survive and grow. According to scientific literature, trees aid each other in exchange of nutrients, information, as well as alerting each other against possible attacks. They help each other withstand the ravages of extreme weather and climatic fluctuations. They exchange water, food, and other nutrients through the soil.
When a building is constructed, the surrounding environment is permanently affected. These Urban-forests were created to restore the balance in the forces of the nation and to restore urban forest cover. There are many ways to make a forest. Vrikshayurveda, an ancient Indian method of creating a forest, is a technique used in India. It is the ancient Indian science and art of plant life. Surapala compiled this knowledge approximately 1000 years ago.
It covers a variety of topics related to the science of plant life, such as how to procure, preserve, and treat seeds before planting; preparing pits to plant saplings; soil selection; watering methods; nutrients and fertilizers; plant diseases, protection from internal or external diseases; groundwater resources, etc.
Another technique, which is in fashion now, is the Miyawaki-method. It was popularized by Akira Miyawaki, a Japanese botanist. He believes natural forest can also be created in urban areas using the same pattern as natural forest and by planting bio-diverse and native trees. There are also ancient Indian forest-making techniques known as Panchvati-Plantation, Triveni-Plantation, Harishankari-Plantation and some of the other prevailing method of forest-plantation.
Urban forest must be at least 2000 square feet in area and no maximum. It can be planted in open areas, along drains and along the riverbeds.
Urban Forests have many benefits
- They reduce the urban heat by reducing extreme weather.
- They help retain water-table because trees soak a lot of water, creating a water-reservoir. It can be used to absorb excess water during rainy seasons and prevent flooding.
- They will greatly improve the AQI of any urban location.
- They can also be used to prepare soil for making urban forests.
- Urban forests can help to prevent soil desertification and maintain soil fertility and productivity.
- It will bring back bio diversity, both in terms flora et fauna.
- It will monitor urban pollution in all its forms, including air-pollutions, water-pollutions, and urban waste generation.
Urban areas must have at least 10 urban forests. These can be found in and around cities to help reduce the threat of pollution.
(The writer is an interior designer. She is also an environmentalist, and co-authored Gift Lungs to Future Generations. (The views expressed in this article are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this publication.
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